0:00:09 > 0:00:13Niccolo Machiavelli - 16th-century Italian diplomat,
0:00:13 > 0:00:17political thinker, arch-baddie.
0:00:17 > 0:00:22His name conjures up everything that's sly about human behaviour.
0:00:22 > 0:00:24Well, we have an image of what the Machiavellian is -
0:00:24 > 0:00:27I mean, the word is in our dictionaries, he is an adjective.
0:00:27 > 0:00:31"Machiavellian - astute, cunning, intriguing."
0:00:31 > 0:00:33Controlling, powerful.
0:00:33 > 0:00:37Sinister, underhand. Devious, scheming.
0:00:37 > 0:00:40Cunning, subtle.
0:00:40 > 0:00:45Nefarious, manipulative and to a degree, cruel.
0:00:46 > 0:00:49Peter Mandelson regularly gets described as Machiavellian,
0:00:49 > 0:00:52I was regularly described as Machiavellian.
0:00:52 > 0:00:58And it's all because of this - The Prince, written 500 years ago.
0:00:58 > 0:01:02It's about power - how to get it and how to keep it.
0:01:02 > 0:01:04"It can be said of men that they are ungrateful,
0:01:04 > 0:01:06"fickle liars and deceivers.
0:01:06 > 0:01:10"They shun danger and are greedy for profit.
0:01:10 > 0:01:12"Therefore, it is necessary for a ruler
0:01:12 > 0:01:14"who wishes to maintain his position
0:01:14 > 0:01:17"to learn how to be able not to be good."
0:01:18 > 0:01:22Machiavelli wrote The Prince in 1513.
0:01:22 > 0:01:25It was shocking then and it's shocking now.
0:01:25 > 0:01:28It's almost as if his name, itself, machi-evil -
0:01:28 > 0:01:31it just lends itself to a form of demonisation.
0:01:31 > 0:01:34"Chapter 17. Of cruelty and mercy,
0:01:34 > 0:01:37"and whether it is better to be loved than feared...
0:01:37 > 0:01:39"Or the contrary."
0:01:39 > 0:01:42There is absolutely nobody in history
0:01:42 > 0:01:45who's had more influence on modern affairs, on politics,
0:01:45 > 0:01:47than Niccolo Machiavelli.
0:01:47 > 0:01:52So what are we to make of The Prince on this, its 500th anniversary?
0:01:52 > 0:01:55How useful and relevant is it today?
0:01:55 > 0:01:57One of the most important books ever written
0:01:57 > 0:02:01and a really useful how-to guide for contemporary reality.
0:02:02 > 0:02:06Was Machiavelli right? Should we all learn how not to be good?
0:02:06 > 0:02:09Is it better to be feared than loved?
0:02:09 > 0:02:13And who are the 21st-century Machiavellians?
0:02:34 > 0:02:35Actually, we're not in Florence -
0:02:35 > 0:02:39we're ten miles south of Florence in San Casciano.
0:02:39 > 0:02:43This was Machiavelli's country house in the 1500s
0:02:43 > 0:02:45and I'm here for a guided tour.
0:02:49 > 0:02:54Questo e lo studio dove Machiavelli scritto Il Principe.
0:02:54 > 0:02:58Where he wrote The Prince? Exactly. And what is this?
0:02:58 > 0:03:00That is his coat of arms.
0:03:00 > 0:03:03His family's coat of arms - the cross and the nails.
0:03:03 > 0:03:05The cross and the nails. Mm-hm.
0:03:05 > 0:03:06Machiavelli. What does that mean?
0:03:06 > 0:03:11It refers back to his name, Machiavelli -
0:03:11 > 0:03:16so related with the cross and the nails of Christ.
0:03:19 > 0:03:22Not a bad coat of arms for a man who, for centuries,
0:03:22 > 0:03:25was known as the Antichrist.
0:03:25 > 0:03:27But the cross and nails might just as well stand
0:03:27 > 0:03:29for the violent times Machiavelli lived through.
0:03:32 > 0:03:34Florence was a city state,
0:03:34 > 0:03:38occupying and controlling only a very small portion
0:03:38 > 0:03:40of a very chaotic Italy,
0:03:40 > 0:03:43surrounded by other city states that were allies on Tuesday,
0:03:43 > 0:03:47enemies on Wednesday and then allies again on Thursday.
0:03:47 > 0:03:49The situation was constantly changing.
0:03:49 > 0:03:52It was very treacherous, you didn't know who your friends were
0:03:52 > 0:03:57and you couldn't trust anyone, so they had to be clever.
0:03:59 > 0:04:02Before he wrote The Prince, Machiavelli worked here
0:04:02 > 0:04:04at the Palazzio Vecchio in Florence.
0:04:04 > 0:04:08The old regime, run by the Medici, had just been deposed.
0:04:08 > 0:04:12A new regime was in charge and Machiavelli served them
0:04:12 > 0:04:14as a high-flying diplomat.
0:04:14 > 0:04:18Machiavelli found himself at the centre of all the diplomatic
0:04:18 > 0:04:22and political negotiations within that period.
0:04:22 > 0:04:28And it was his ability as a political analyst that enabled him to advance.
0:04:28 > 0:04:31But just when things were going so well for Machiavelli,
0:04:31 > 0:04:34the Medici returned to power
0:04:34 > 0:04:36and events took a dramatic turn,
0:04:36 > 0:04:40events that would ultimately lead to the writing of The Prince.
0:04:41 > 0:04:45He was falsely accused in February of 1513
0:04:45 > 0:04:48of taking part in an anti-Medician conspiracy.
0:04:48 > 0:04:51And he's horribly tortured. And then he's thrown into prison.
0:04:56 > 0:04:59There aren't many documents relating to Machiavelli at this time.
0:04:59 > 0:05:02But this year British historian Stephen Milner
0:05:02 > 0:05:05discovered one of the most important of all.
0:05:05 > 0:05:08He was researching Florentine town criers
0:05:08 > 0:05:13when he stumbled across Machiavelli's arrest warrant.
0:05:13 > 0:05:16Florence was an incredible place for collecting documents,
0:05:16 > 0:05:19partly because they didn't trust each other. They were...
0:05:19 > 0:05:23Where are we? There we go. Oh, there we go.
0:05:23 > 0:05:26So, this is it? You just happened to...
0:05:26 > 0:05:28I ordered this particular volume,
0:05:28 > 0:05:33and this was the one that contained the original proclamation.
0:05:33 > 0:05:36It was carried through the city by the town crier,
0:05:36 > 0:05:39and that, they actually would have read and held
0:05:39 > 0:05:42whilst on horseback through the various places
0:05:42 > 0:05:46where these proclamations were made.
0:05:46 > 0:05:48You can see there's a little hole in the middle
0:05:48 > 0:05:50where they put them on a spike for record-keeping.
0:05:50 > 0:05:53And here we see Niccolo Bernardo Machiavelli.
0:05:53 > 0:05:55So, what is the arrest for?
0:05:55 > 0:05:57The proclamation is asking...
0:05:57 > 0:05:59It's a notice asking for the whereabouts of Machiavelli
0:05:59 > 0:06:02and for people to come forward with information.
0:06:02 > 0:06:06It actually says within the hour, "intra una ora da ora",
0:06:06 > 0:06:10which gives you some idea of the urgency that lay behind his arrest.
0:06:10 > 0:06:15And it says "If they are not informed, they will not be excused."
0:06:15 > 0:06:18So there were no excuses for not notifying. Tough stuff.
0:06:18 > 0:06:22It is a kind of most-wanted proclamation, if you like.
0:06:22 > 0:06:25I think working in the archives in Florence, it's kind of a drug,
0:06:25 > 0:06:26in a sense, of archive fever.
0:06:26 > 0:06:30You never know when you turn a page what you're going to bump into.
0:06:30 > 0:06:34There's a lovely proverb from the Renaissance period that says,
0:06:34 > 0:06:37"Carte si face, perche uomo e fallace" -
0:06:37 > 0:06:40"Get it in writing, you can't trust anybody."
0:06:40 > 0:06:44It's almost a kind of mantra for Machiavelli's own writing, I think.
0:06:49 > 0:06:50Well, here we are in the Bargello,
0:06:50 > 0:06:53which is the Florentine police headquarters,
0:06:53 > 0:06:55and this is where Machiavelli was brought
0:06:55 > 0:06:57shortly after he was arrested.
0:06:59 > 0:07:01He claimed that he was tortured -
0:07:01 > 0:07:03that he was actually put on a form of rack,
0:07:03 > 0:07:06that he went three notches on the rack without cracking.
0:07:08 > 0:07:10But there's absolutely no evidence
0:07:10 > 0:07:12that he was involved in this conspiracy.
0:07:16 > 0:07:19But he has a stroke of good fortune as well,
0:07:19 > 0:07:24which is, the next month, Pope Julius dies
0:07:24 > 0:07:29and the Medici acquire the papacy - Leo X.
0:07:29 > 0:07:33And he declares great rejoicings in the city and an amnesty,
0:07:33 > 0:07:34and so Machiavelli is freed.
0:07:36 > 0:07:39But he was in effect banned from the city,
0:07:39 > 0:07:43he was sent out to his farmhouse and kept under house arrest.
0:07:43 > 0:07:44Rather like being on probation,
0:07:44 > 0:07:47he had to remain within a certain distance of the city
0:07:47 > 0:07:49and that's where, in his study, he began to write
0:07:49 > 0:07:52what we now know as The Prince.
0:07:53 > 0:07:54And here he is.
0:07:59 > 0:08:02"Those who wish to win the favour of a prince will generally approach him
0:08:02 > 0:08:05"with gifts they believe will most delight him.
0:08:05 > 0:08:09"Hence we see princes being offered horses, arms,
0:08:09 > 0:08:11"vestments of gold and similar accoutrements.
0:08:12 > 0:08:16"I have found among my possessions nothing I value higher
0:08:16 > 0:08:19"than my knowledge of the deeds of great men."
0:08:21 > 0:08:25This is how Machiavelli begins The Prince in 1513,
0:08:25 > 0:08:30with a dedication to Lorenzo the Magnificent, the young Medici ruler.
0:08:30 > 0:08:34It was a blatant attempt to suck up to the new regime.
0:08:34 > 0:08:36"You need me," he's saying,
0:08:36 > 0:08:38"because I know the secrets of power."
0:08:39 > 0:08:43The book is in essence a job application.
0:08:43 > 0:08:47We have here The Prince manuscript.
0:08:47 > 0:08:51As you can see, it is beautifully illuminated
0:08:51 > 0:08:54and it's datable about 1520s
0:08:54 > 0:08:59and it's in the hand of the closest friend of Machiavelli,
0:08:59 > 0:09:00Biagio Buonaccorsi.
0:09:00 > 0:09:05It's one of the most eldest copies absolutely ever.
0:09:05 > 0:09:11And, as you see here, Niccolo Machiavelli addresses the book
0:09:11 > 0:09:16to Lorenzo The Magnificent and here you have no title.
0:09:16 > 0:09:20So, the book is without title.
0:09:20 > 0:09:24The Prince is the title the editors gave the book
0:09:24 > 0:09:27when the book was actually published,
0:09:27 > 0:09:30five years after the death of Machiavelli.
0:09:30 > 0:09:33This is another fascinating detail about this book.
0:09:35 > 0:09:38So, The Prince wasn't actually called The Prince
0:09:38 > 0:09:41and there are more surprises, too.
0:09:41 > 0:09:43Well, the first thing you notice if you pick up The Prince
0:09:43 > 0:09:48is that it's an extremely short book, it runs to only 90 pages.
0:09:48 > 0:09:51It's a book really about two things. One is how to gain power,
0:09:51 > 0:09:53and that's what the first half of the book is about,
0:09:53 > 0:09:55but the rest of the book
0:09:55 > 0:09:59and the real interest for Machiavelli and why he wrote it is,
0:09:59 > 0:10:02how do you hold on to power once you've got it?
0:10:02 > 0:10:04"I find it more fitting to seek the truth of the matter,
0:10:04 > 0:10:07"rather than imaginary conceptions,
0:10:07 > 0:10:08"because how one lives
0:10:08 > 0:10:11"and how one ought to live are so far apart
0:10:11 > 0:10:15"that a ruler who persists in doing what ought to be done
0:10:15 > 0:10:17"will undermine his power."
0:10:17 > 0:10:22He says, "I'm trying to write something useful - utile,
0:10:22 > 0:10:26"and so what I say in this book departs massively,"
0:10:26 > 0:10:28the Italian says massima,
0:10:28 > 0:10:30"it departs massively from what anyone has ever written
0:10:30 > 0:10:32"on this subject."
0:10:32 > 0:10:34So he knows that it's a revolutionary book.
0:10:34 > 0:10:40The intent of the book was to be a guide, a kind of handbook,
0:10:40 > 0:10:43for politically ambitious leaders.
0:10:43 > 0:10:46You can play the game for good or you can play it for ill.
0:10:46 > 0:10:52For Machiavelli, it's more important to play the game well
0:10:52 > 0:10:54than to be morally good.
0:10:55 > 0:10:58Chapter 18, Of The Need For Princes To Keep Their Word.
0:10:58 > 0:11:02"Everybody knows how commendable it is for a ruler to keep his word
0:11:02 > 0:11:05"and live by integrity rather than by cunning,
0:11:05 > 0:11:07"and yet experience shows us
0:11:07 > 0:11:10"that rulers with little regard for their word
0:11:10 > 0:11:17"have achieved great things, being expert at beguiling men's minds."
0:11:17 > 0:11:21The first generation who opened this book, if they came to chapter 18
0:11:21 > 0:11:24and read it, they would have been astounded by this.
0:11:24 > 0:11:27In Roman law, there is a maxim which says
0:11:27 > 0:11:29good faith must always be kept.
0:11:29 > 0:11:33You must always keep your promises, fides sit servanda.
0:11:33 > 0:11:35And that chapter was, I think,
0:11:35 > 0:11:39the one that gave it its most sinister reputation.
0:11:39 > 0:11:42"A prince must be a fox to spot the snares
0:11:42 > 0:11:44"and a lion to overwhelm the wolves.
0:11:44 > 0:11:47"Those who rely merely upon the lion's strength
0:11:47 > 0:11:49"do not understand this.
0:11:49 > 0:11:53"Therefore, a prudent ruler cannot keep his word, nor should he,
0:11:53 > 0:11:56"when it would be to his disadvantage to do so.
0:11:56 > 0:11:59"If all men were good, this rule would not stand.
0:11:59 > 0:12:00"But as men are wicked
0:12:00 > 0:12:04"and not prepared to keep their word to you,
0:12:04 > 0:12:07"you have no need to keep your word to them."
0:12:07 > 0:12:10He knew very well the nature of human beings
0:12:10 > 0:12:13and how they behave or not behave.
0:12:13 > 0:12:19So he is a man who is used to being in the world.
0:12:19 > 0:12:22"Those best able to imitate the fox have succeeded best.
0:12:22 > 0:12:25"But foxiness should be well concealed -
0:12:25 > 0:12:28"one must be a great feigner and dissembler.
0:12:29 > 0:12:33"A deceiver will always find someone willing to be deceived."
0:12:34 > 0:12:38What's interesting about the book, it's a bit like it says,
0:12:38 > 0:12:42"We've inherited an idea about human nature
0:12:42 > 0:12:46"from Christianity and classical humanism."
0:12:46 > 0:12:49And this idea of human nature is encouraging us to be good.
0:12:49 > 0:12:51And what Machiavelli is saying is,
0:12:51 > 0:12:54"What about if we thought differently about this?
0:12:54 > 0:12:55"What about if we thought
0:12:55 > 0:13:00"that vices and virtues were things you could use to survive?"
0:13:00 > 0:13:03"If a ruler who wants always to act honourably is surrounded
0:13:03 > 0:13:07"by many unscrupulous men, his downfall is inevitable.
0:13:07 > 0:13:09"Therefore, it is necessary
0:13:09 > 0:13:12"for a ruler who wishes to maintain his position
0:13:12 > 0:13:15"to learn how to be able not to be good."
0:13:16 > 0:13:19To any Christian reader of Machiavelli at the time,
0:13:19 > 0:13:22they're going to say, "But you're forgetting the Day of Judgment.
0:13:22 > 0:13:25"On the Day of Judgment, all your sins will be revealed
0:13:25 > 0:13:28"and you will very much wish that you hadn't behaved like that."
0:13:28 > 0:13:32Now, Machiavelli pays no attention to that.
0:13:32 > 0:13:34That's a huge silence in the book.
0:13:34 > 0:13:37It's just not there as a consideration.
0:13:37 > 0:13:40The book is predicated on the assumption
0:13:40 > 0:13:42that the idea that your sins will find you out
0:13:42 > 0:13:45is a childish superstition, they will not find you out.
0:13:48 > 0:13:50Machiavelli is saying something very simply, which is,
0:13:50 > 0:13:52"These are wonderful pictures,
0:13:52 > 0:13:54"but they've got nothing to do with reality."
0:13:54 > 0:13:57It's not as though if you're good, you'll be rewarded, it's not a deal.
0:13:57 > 0:13:59Actually, it doesn't matter whether you're good or bad
0:13:59 > 0:14:01in terms of, it doesn't predict anything.
0:14:01 > 0:14:04So what Machiavelli is saying in contemporary language is,
0:14:04 > 0:14:06"We need to get real."
0:14:14 > 0:14:19This is Jonathan Powell. He used to be Tony Blair's Chief Of Staff.
0:14:19 > 0:14:21Now, he's written a memoir
0:14:21 > 0:14:25called The New Machiavelli: How To Wield Power In The Modern World.
0:14:27 > 0:14:30"The choice of advisers is very important for a prince.
0:14:30 > 0:14:32"One can assess their prince's intelligence
0:14:32 > 0:14:34"by looking at the men with whom he surrounds himself."
0:14:35 > 0:14:37So I'm kind of asking myself
0:14:37 > 0:14:41why you called your book The New Machiavelli?
0:14:41 > 0:14:42I mean, what made you do that?
0:14:42 > 0:14:45Because a lot of people might have thought that was a term of abuse.
0:14:45 > 0:14:48Well, I wanted to write a book that was actually useful to people
0:14:48 > 0:14:49who were in government.
0:14:49 > 0:14:53There are an awful lot of books of theory, constitutional books,
0:14:53 > 0:14:55most of which are completely useless
0:14:55 > 0:14:57because they describe the way things should be,
0:14:57 > 0:14:58rather than the way things are.
0:14:58 > 0:15:01What's great about Machiavelli is, he writes about reality.
0:15:01 > 0:15:04He busts myths, he cuts through all of that.
0:15:04 > 0:15:10The word "Machiavellian" was used 358 times by the newspapers
0:15:10 > 0:15:13in the first year of Tony Blair's reign.
0:15:13 > 0:15:15Somewhere in there, there's a connection.
0:15:15 > 0:15:18There are quite a lot of factors about Machiavelli
0:15:18 > 0:15:22which are ones that many politicians would not want to own up to.
0:15:22 > 0:15:24For instance, chapter 15,
0:15:24 > 0:15:29"It is necessary for a prince who wishes to maintain his position
0:15:29 > 0:15:32"to learn how to be able not to be good."
0:15:32 > 0:15:36Machiavelli was saying not that princes should go around being evil,
0:15:36 > 0:15:37what he was saying is,
0:15:37 > 0:15:40you have to check your personal morality at the door
0:15:40 > 0:15:42when you become a leader.
0:15:42 > 0:15:44Personal morality is all very well as an individual,
0:15:44 > 0:15:47but if you are thinking about the greater good of the community,
0:15:47 > 0:15:49sometimes you'll have to do things
0:15:49 > 0:15:50that are not good as an individual,
0:15:50 > 0:15:52but are good for society as a whole.
0:15:52 > 0:15:56"A prince must therefore be a fox to spot the snares
0:15:56 > 0:15:58"and a lion to overwhelm the wolves."
0:15:58 > 0:16:01This is one of Machiavelli's most interesting lessons.
0:16:01 > 0:16:03You must be a lion, a courageous person,
0:16:03 > 0:16:04but you also had to be a fox
0:16:04 > 0:16:07and have the intelligence and the guile to avoid traps.
0:16:07 > 0:16:09There was an example for Tony Blair
0:16:09 > 0:16:11when he was running in the 2005 election.
0:16:11 > 0:16:14Tony Blair decided he had to make a speech on immigration.
0:16:14 > 0:16:17NEWSREADER: Tony Blair said controls on immigration had had a positive effect.
0:16:17 > 0:16:19When he finished, I said to him,
0:16:19 > 0:16:21"I noticed the teleprompter had gone wrong,
0:16:21 > 0:16:24"because large parts of the speech, you were looking down at your notes
0:16:24 > 0:16:25"rather than looking at the camera."
0:16:25 > 0:16:28He said, "There was nothing wrong with the teleprompter,
0:16:28 > 0:16:31"but certain bits of the speech, I didn't want shown on television,
0:16:31 > 0:16:35"so I made sure I was looking at my notes, so those bits wouldn't be used by the news."
0:16:35 > 0:16:36That was the fox bit.
0:16:36 > 0:16:38Did Tony Blair ever talk about The Prince?
0:16:38 > 0:16:39Did he ever read it, do you think?
0:16:39 > 0:16:42I've no idea if he read it. He certainly never talked about it.
0:16:42 > 0:16:45I think he might be slightly horrified to be thought of
0:16:45 > 0:16:47as a Machiavellian leader, but I mean it as a compliment.
0:16:50 > 0:16:55Robert Greene has also been bringing The Prince into the modern world.
0:16:55 > 0:16:56He used to work in Hollywood.
0:16:56 > 0:17:00Now, he writes bestsellers like The 48 Laws Of Power.
0:17:02 > 0:17:05The traditional way of looking at politics
0:17:05 > 0:17:07is veiled with all of these concepts
0:17:07 > 0:17:11of what's good for the public, of politicians' intentions,
0:17:11 > 0:17:14of being altruistic and generous.
0:17:14 > 0:17:18And what Machiavelli did is take all of that away.
0:17:18 > 0:17:20Look at power as it is.
0:17:20 > 0:17:23Watch the moves of the various people on the chessboard.
0:17:23 > 0:17:26So, it's pure strategy and it was absolutely brilliant,
0:17:26 > 0:17:29he's the first person to ever come up with that concept.
0:17:30 > 0:17:33There are different types of political leaders.
0:17:33 > 0:17:37There are the types who come into office with high ideals.
0:17:37 > 0:17:40They want to change things, they want to reform.
0:17:40 > 0:17:43They believe that they're doing something for the good of the public
0:17:43 > 0:17:48and then they realise very quickly that politics is warfare.
0:17:48 > 0:17:50And they have to adapt to this environment
0:17:50 > 0:17:54and leaders like that, perhaps Obama would fit into that category,
0:17:54 > 0:17:56can do very well if they're adaptable.
0:17:56 > 0:18:00Then you have other types like Bill Clinton, perhaps Tony Blair,
0:18:00 > 0:18:02or if you're Angela Merkel -
0:18:02 > 0:18:05these are more political animals by nature.
0:18:05 > 0:18:08They are very Machiavellian, it's in their DNA.
0:18:08 > 0:18:10They don't need to read The Prince,
0:18:10 > 0:18:13they understand how the laws of power operate.
0:18:13 > 0:18:17So, if you are in a position of power, you have to play a game -
0:18:17 > 0:18:21the dynamic doesn't matter, whether it's a dictatorship or a democracy.
0:18:24 > 0:18:27What The Prince is, in a sense,
0:18:27 > 0:18:29is a portrayal of the attributes and qualities
0:18:29 > 0:18:32that you need to take the power that you have
0:18:32 > 0:18:34and develop that power in a way that is most useful to you
0:18:34 > 0:18:37and what you are trying to do. Well...
0:18:38 > 0:18:42..that is the case today for Barack Obama,
0:18:42 > 0:18:45today for Angela Merkel, David Cameron
0:18:45 > 0:18:48and all the rest of them. That's partly what they're about,
0:18:48 > 0:18:52because we can be very squeamish about this, if we want,
0:18:52 > 0:18:57but the truth is, power is...it is a force.
0:18:59 > 0:19:01Money is the Mcmansion in Sarasota
0:19:01 > 0:19:04that starts falling apart after ten years.
0:19:04 > 0:19:09Power is the old stone building that stands for centuries.
0:19:09 > 0:19:13I cannot respect someone who doesn't see the difference.
0:19:13 > 0:19:17The allure of power is a big theme in drama at the moment.
0:19:17 > 0:19:19In the hit series House Of Cards,
0:19:19 > 0:19:23Kevin Spacey plays the Machiavellian senator, Frank Underwood.
0:19:25 > 0:19:28It's a remake of the earlier series
0:19:28 > 0:19:30starring Ian Richardson as Francis Urquhart,
0:19:30 > 0:19:35written by Margaret Thatcher's Chief Of Staff, Michael Dobbs.
0:19:35 > 0:19:39There's a dramatic thread that runs all the way from Machiavelli
0:19:39 > 0:19:43through Richard III through Francis Urquhart and Frank Underwood
0:19:43 > 0:19:46just talking to you, letting you in on the secrets of power.
0:19:46 > 0:19:50I think you could achieve anything you wanted.
0:19:50 > 0:19:53You might think that, Mattie,
0:19:53 > 0:19:56I'm afraid I couldn't possibly comment.
0:19:57 > 0:20:01And you think that this is wonderful, you're being trusted,
0:20:01 > 0:20:03you're being made a co-conspirator.
0:20:05 > 0:20:06I'm terribly sorry.
0:20:09 > 0:20:12Thank you, Francis, you are a good man.
0:20:19 > 0:20:22The Tory Party in the 1977/78 period
0:20:22 > 0:20:25just before Margaret Thatcher was pushed out -
0:20:25 > 0:20:27which was when I wrote House of Cards -
0:20:27 > 0:20:29it was like Florence under the Borgias.
0:20:29 > 0:20:31I mean, it was full of conspiracy in dark corners
0:20:31 > 0:20:33and people whispering wicked things.
0:20:33 > 0:20:38So it wasn't so much that "I must write something which is Machiavellian."
0:20:38 > 0:20:43I had, I think, lived though a time and was living though a time
0:20:43 > 0:20:46which I think Machiavelli would have recognised.
0:20:46 > 0:20:49I think that this particular book of mine
0:20:49 > 0:20:53goes back to my university days, and it's stayed with me ever since.
0:20:53 > 0:20:55It's a wonderful book for dipping into.
0:20:55 > 0:20:58He's actually saying, "This is the way you do it."
0:20:58 > 0:21:01And you could be the most principled politician on the earth,
0:21:01 > 0:21:04but unless you get your fingers on power
0:21:04 > 0:21:08and know how to pull the levers, you are wasting your time.
0:21:10 > 0:21:12For centuries, The Prince has been inspiring
0:21:12 > 0:21:15the powerful and the tyrannical.
0:21:15 > 0:21:19Napoleon read it. So did Stalin - he made notes in the margins.
0:21:19 > 0:21:23Mussolini even did his dissertation on it.
0:21:23 > 0:21:26It's always been the book of choice for political operators.
0:21:27 > 0:21:31It's true that The Prince was the favourite bedside reading
0:21:31 > 0:21:37of Henry Kissinger and Nixon. And for a good reason,
0:21:37 > 0:21:41because they were hard-nosed political realists.
0:21:41 > 0:21:44And part of the fascination of The Prince is that it shows us
0:21:44 > 0:21:46what the world looks like
0:21:46 > 0:21:51when the ethical dimensions have been removed from the picture.
0:21:51 > 0:21:55And I think for someone like Henry Kissinger or Nixon,
0:21:55 > 0:21:58there was a certain pleasure in reading a book
0:21:58 > 0:22:01that looked at the world the same way they did
0:22:01 > 0:22:04and the same way many other people do.
0:22:06 > 0:22:09Machiavelli is perhaps most famous for the phrase
0:22:09 > 0:22:11"the end justifies the means."
0:22:11 > 0:22:14Actually, he never said it.
0:22:14 > 0:22:16But he may as well have done.
0:22:16 > 0:22:18The exact thought that's there in The Prince is,
0:22:18 > 0:22:22"the action is accused and the outcome excuses it."
0:22:22 > 0:22:24So in the Italian, it's very beautiful.
0:22:24 > 0:22:29It's accusata and scusata - it accuses you, but it excuses you.
0:22:29 > 0:22:33So you are excused if the motivation for the action
0:22:33 > 0:22:35was the good of the state.
0:22:35 > 0:22:37We have to do justice to Machiavelli
0:22:37 > 0:22:40because it's not a matter of personal career
0:22:40 > 0:22:41or for just his own sake,
0:22:41 > 0:22:44it's also for a political purpose.
0:22:44 > 0:22:50He was really convinced that the stability of government in Florence
0:22:50 > 0:22:53was the most important thing to do.
0:22:53 > 0:22:57For the sake of the common good,
0:22:57 > 0:23:00you have to act in a bad manner.
0:23:00 > 0:23:02Just sometimes.
0:23:05 > 0:23:08But if you have to do something that's really terrible,
0:23:08 > 0:23:11then you have to recognise that it's really terrible.
0:23:11 > 0:23:13But you still have to do it.
0:23:13 > 0:23:16I want them dead - mother and child both.
0:23:16 > 0:23:20And that fool Viserys as well. Is that plain enough for you?
0:23:20 > 0:23:22I want them both dead.
0:23:22 > 0:23:25You will dishonour yourself for ever if you do this. Honour!
0:23:25 > 0:23:27I've got seven kingdoms to rule!
0:23:27 > 0:23:34It's tough to be a ruler, whether in Machiavelli's time or today.
0:23:35 > 0:23:39'George RR Martin understands the burden of command.'
0:23:39 > 0:23:42This is your chair. This is your throne.
0:23:42 > 0:23:43My throne?
0:23:43 > 0:23:47'He's the best-selling author behind the TV series Game of Thrones -
0:23:47 > 0:23:51'set in an imaginary world of warring kingdoms.'
0:23:52 > 0:23:56Game of Thrones is a fantasy, of course.
0:23:56 > 0:24:01I think a lot of the fantasy that had gone before me
0:24:01 > 0:24:04has this unspoken assumption
0:24:04 > 0:24:06that if you are a good man,
0:24:06 > 0:24:09you will be a good king or a good prince.
0:24:09 > 0:24:13But if you look at the real world, if you look at real history,
0:24:13 > 0:24:15or if you look at contemporary times,
0:24:15 > 0:24:17it's not enough just to be a good guy, you know.
0:24:19 > 0:24:24I read The Prince back in college, which was, of course, many years ago.
0:24:24 > 0:24:28And obviously, I absorbed quite a few of its lessons.
0:24:28 > 0:24:31It is a terrible thing we must consider - a vile thing -
0:24:31 > 0:24:36yet we who presume to rule must sometimes do vile things
0:24:36 > 0:24:38for the good of the realm.
0:24:38 > 0:24:40It's not enough just to say,
0:24:40 > 0:24:44"I will be good and wise and do the right thing."
0:24:44 > 0:24:46What is the right thing? That's the question.
0:24:48 > 0:24:52Don't Be Evil - that's what Google say is the right thing.
0:24:52 > 0:24:57But isn't it precisely these user-friendly global corporations
0:24:57 > 0:25:00that are the modern day Machiavellians?
0:25:00 > 0:25:05Corporatism presents a much more pleasant face to the world,
0:25:05 > 0:25:08but in that sense it may be even more Machiavellian,
0:25:08 > 0:25:11because it's smiling at us.
0:25:11 > 0:25:15Is it benign? I don't know. Is it benign? But it's certainly subtle.
0:25:16 > 0:25:19The motto for Google is "Don't be evil."
0:25:19 > 0:25:22But don't look at the words, look at their actions -
0:25:22 > 0:25:25the data they are gathering on individuals,
0:25:25 > 0:25:27the global presence they have.
0:25:27 > 0:25:30But in order to exercise power in the world,
0:25:30 > 0:25:34you have to give the appearance of being nice and good.
0:25:34 > 0:25:37If you look to be too ambitious for power,
0:25:37 > 0:25:41people are going to see that and are not going to like it.
0:25:41 > 0:25:42The public wants to feel
0:25:42 > 0:25:46that you are motivated by some higher aspiration.
0:25:46 > 0:25:48So you have to manage appearances.
0:25:48 > 0:25:51And all of these companies play the game like that.
0:25:51 > 0:25:54The mission of the company is to make the world more open and connected.
0:25:54 > 0:25:59Everyone's going to have a better experience when doing different things with their friends.
0:26:00 > 0:26:02"When ones sees him,
0:26:02 > 0:26:04"a ruler must be a paragon of mercy,
0:26:04 > 0:26:08"loyalty, humanness, integrity and scrupulousness.
0:26:08 > 0:26:11"Indeed, there is nothing more important
0:26:11 > 0:26:13"than appearing to have this last quality.
0:26:13 > 0:26:18"For the common people are impressed by appearances and results."
0:26:20 > 0:26:24Machiavelli is the first person ever to analyse that phenomenon.
0:26:24 > 0:26:26I think we are living in a period
0:26:26 > 0:26:30that's remarkably similar to what Machiavelli was living through.
0:26:32 > 0:26:34And it's not just with global tech companies
0:26:34 > 0:26:36that appearances matter.
0:26:36 > 0:26:39Machiavelli's rule applies everywhere,
0:26:39 > 0:26:43not least - as Robert Greene found out - in Hollywood.
0:26:43 > 0:26:47If you go into a meeting and you give off confidence,
0:26:47 > 0:26:52like you could pull this off, like you can see it to the end
0:26:52 > 0:26:55and you know what you're doing, you're going to go a lot further
0:26:55 > 0:26:57than somebody who might have a brilliant idea,
0:26:57 > 0:27:00but doesn't know how to pitch it as well.
0:27:00 > 0:27:04I know, for example, that I made that mistake recently in a meeting,
0:27:04 > 0:27:07that we didn't exude that insane sense of confidence
0:27:07 > 0:27:10that we were going to get this project done.
0:27:10 > 0:27:14So it's a realm of appearances, basically.
0:27:16 > 0:27:18But for Machiavelli,
0:27:18 > 0:27:21no-one who wants to succeed in the game of power
0:27:21 > 0:27:25can escape one key factor - luck.
0:27:25 > 0:27:29Fortuna, he calls it - that capricious turn of the wheel
0:27:29 > 0:27:32by which the ambitious rise and fall -
0:27:32 > 0:27:35and never more so than in politics.
0:27:35 > 0:27:38What does it mean to be able to make your fortune?
0:27:38 > 0:27:43It is to have the qualities that enable you to dominate luck.
0:27:43 > 0:27:46How can you hope to dominate luck?
0:27:46 > 0:27:50In the end, you can't. Fortune is always more powerful than reason.
0:27:50 > 0:27:53But there are qualities that enable you,
0:27:53 > 0:27:56as the excellent American phrase puts it, to get lucky.
0:27:57 > 0:27:59But, of course, you could, as a politician,
0:27:59 > 0:28:03simply have an amazing stroke of luck from which everything follows.
0:28:03 > 0:28:06Tony Blair would certainly be an example of that.
0:28:06 > 0:28:09'The body of John Smith was carried into the parish... '
0:28:09 > 0:28:12John Smith, who was Leader of the Opposition,
0:28:12 > 0:28:16dies very suddenly in his mid-fifties.
0:28:16 > 0:28:21So Blair becomes Leader of the Opposition at the age of 41,
0:28:21 > 0:28:25when he had no expectation of the leader dying in the mid-fifties.
0:28:25 > 0:28:28People don't die in their mid-fifties. But John Smith did.
0:28:28 > 0:28:32This morning, I'm announcing my candidature for the position
0:28:32 > 0:28:34of Leader of the Labour Party.
0:28:35 > 0:28:39There's no successful politician who hasn't, at some point,
0:28:39 > 0:28:40had pure good luck.
0:28:40 > 0:28:43And Tony Blair's pure good luck, terrible thing to say,
0:28:43 > 0:28:45was the death of John Smith.
0:28:45 > 0:28:47Surely he would have won that election,
0:28:47 > 0:28:50so he would have been Prime Minister. But instead, it was Blair.
0:28:50 > 0:28:52A new dawn has broken, has it not?
0:28:52 > 0:28:52CHEERING
0:28:53 > 0:28:56He had the Fortuna, he had the luck. And he grabbed it.
0:28:56 > 0:28:59He had the opportunity to become Leader of the Labour Party
0:28:59 > 0:29:01when John Smith died, and he grabbed it.
0:29:01 > 0:29:02And he made something of it.
0:29:02 > 0:29:05I think he was a classically Machiavellian leader,
0:29:05 > 0:29:07from that point of view.
0:29:10 > 0:29:15For Machiavelli, the flip side of Fortuna is Virtu.
0:29:15 > 0:29:19He doesn't mean virtue, of course, he means a kind of virtuosity.
0:29:20 > 0:29:26In Latin, the word for a man is vir - the source of our word virile.
0:29:26 > 0:29:31It's this principle of manliness, of courage, of prudence,
0:29:31 > 0:29:33of knowing how to master fortune.
0:29:33 > 0:29:36So that's what virtue is, because if you can master fortune,
0:29:36 > 0:29:40you can maintain your state and thereby gain glory.
0:29:42 > 0:29:46"This raises the question of whether it is better to be loved than feared.
0:29:46 > 0:29:51"My reply is that one would like to be both, but as it is difficult
0:29:51 > 0:29:53"to combine love and fear,
0:29:53 > 0:29:58"it is far safer to be feared, because it can be said of men
0:29:58 > 0:30:03"that they're ungrateful, fickle, liars and deceivers.
0:30:03 > 0:30:07"They shun danger and are greedy for profit."
0:30:07 > 0:30:09He recommends fear over love.
0:30:09 > 0:30:12Of course, he says it's better to be both,
0:30:12 > 0:30:16but if you have to choose between the two, it's better to be feared.
0:30:16 > 0:30:18"The bond of love is one that men break
0:30:18 > 0:30:20"when it is to their advantage to do so,
0:30:20 > 0:30:25"but fear is strengthened by dread of punishment,
0:30:25 > 0:30:27"which is always effective."
0:30:27 > 0:30:30Fear is something you can rely on
0:30:30 > 0:30:34as a very stable sort of emotional foundation to build your power on.
0:30:34 > 0:30:39Machiavelli was all about power - of the Prince or of the state.
0:30:46 > 0:30:48This is a remarkable moment in The Prince
0:30:48 > 0:30:50because it's the only moment
0:30:50 > 0:30:52when he really generalises about human nature.
0:30:52 > 0:30:56He says that most people are fickle, you can't trust them.
0:30:56 > 0:31:00They are going to do everything that is in their own interest
0:31:00 > 0:31:02and not in your interest.
0:31:02 > 0:31:06So what would be the point of trying to bind them to you by affection?
0:31:06 > 0:31:08They'll simply sell you down the river.
0:31:08 > 0:31:10You've got to make them frightened.
0:31:13 > 0:31:15"If one has to choose between them,
0:31:15 > 0:31:18"it is far safer to be feared than loved."
0:31:18 > 0:31:21Very true of politicians now. If you think about politicians,
0:31:21 > 0:31:23you can be absolutely beloved of your party.
0:31:23 > 0:31:25Neil Kinnock was beloved of the Labour Party.
0:31:25 > 0:31:28Every time he went through a Prime Minister's Questions
0:31:28 > 0:31:30or was bashed to pieces by Mrs Thatcher,
0:31:30 > 0:31:32the whole Labour Party suffered with him.
0:31:32 > 0:31:35But he could never be elected because he didn't have that aspect of fear.
0:31:35 > 0:31:38Mrs Thatcher was never much liked by her troops,
0:31:38 > 0:31:39she was feared and respected.
0:31:39 > 0:31:41So she was someone who was feared rather than loved.
0:31:41 > 0:31:43Machiavelli says the point is
0:31:43 > 0:31:46that being loved is a reciprocal relationship.
0:31:46 > 0:31:49The person can stop loving you, whereas fear is a one-way thing.
0:31:49 > 0:31:50They can't stop fearing you
0:31:50 > 0:31:53as long as you have the means to make them fear.
0:31:53 > 0:31:57Through it all, the fear point is really important.
0:31:57 > 0:32:00When the leader goes into a gathering,
0:32:00 > 0:32:05there has to be a sense that that person is the main event
0:32:05 > 0:32:07in that room at that time.
0:32:07 > 0:32:12They can emanate all sorts of charm and niceness and all the rest of it,
0:32:12 > 0:32:16but, you know, look at what happens within our political system
0:32:16 > 0:32:18in the run-up to a re-shuffle.
0:32:19 > 0:32:23I can remember the very first time he did a re-shuffle.
0:32:23 > 0:32:26I mean, he wasn't quite physically sick, but he wasn't far off it.
0:32:26 > 0:32:27He absolutely hated it.
0:32:29 > 0:32:31And he definitely got tougher as time went on.
0:32:31 > 0:32:35Out went Charles Clarke, after so many bad headlines...
0:32:35 > 0:32:39Come the last re-shuffle that I was, as it were, directly involved in,
0:32:39 > 0:32:43once he'd done the big beasts, and done them all face to face,
0:32:43 > 0:32:46he kind of had a list of people that he did by phone.
0:32:46 > 0:32:51And was pretty swift about it as well.
0:32:51 > 0:32:54"Look, you've probably heard I'm doing a re-shuffle
0:32:54 > 0:32:56"and I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask for your job
0:32:56 > 0:33:00"because we need to make some changes." Well, there we are.
0:33:01 > 0:33:04Is it useful that they feel slightly fearful?
0:33:04 > 0:33:07I think if leaders are being really, really honest about it,
0:33:07 > 0:33:09I think that is quite useful at times.
0:33:09 > 0:33:14The ruler needs to be able to intimidate people -
0:33:14 > 0:33:18for lack of a better word - needs to be able, in extreme cases
0:33:18 > 0:33:21like renaissance Italy, to execute his enemies.
0:33:21 > 0:33:24In modern times, it would be more to fire people.
0:33:25 > 0:33:30For Machiavelli, not even the most loyal servant should be spared.
0:33:30 > 0:33:33If you have to get rid of them to maintain power,
0:33:33 > 0:33:34then they must go.
0:33:35 > 0:33:37Better to be feared than loved.
0:33:38 > 0:33:43I would say that to be feared is far better than to be loved.
0:33:43 > 0:33:47There has to be, between an employer and employee,
0:33:47 > 0:33:49a tiny little bit of fear.
0:33:49 > 0:33:53But I certainly don't need to be loved by anybody in business.
0:33:55 > 0:33:56'These are the Dragons.
0:33:56 > 0:34:01'Five of Britain's wealthiest and most enterprising business leaders.'
0:34:01 > 0:34:05Multimillionaire businesswoman and former Dragon Hilary Devey
0:34:05 > 0:34:08first read The Prince when she was at school.
0:34:08 > 0:34:1216th century political analysis may have felt like a chore
0:34:12 > 0:34:14but it's certainly left its mark.
0:34:14 > 0:34:18Let's face it, for a 15-year-old, even for a 50-year-old,
0:34:18 > 0:34:21it's heavy going, it's a hard read.
0:34:21 > 0:34:25Because it's very thought-provoking, which is what it's meant to be.
0:34:25 > 0:34:28'I think I can bring a lot to the party.
0:34:28 > 0:34:32'I've a lot of access to major retailers.
0:34:32 > 0:34:34'I'll offer you the full 70,000.
0:34:36 > 0:34:39'But I'd like 20%.'
0:34:40 > 0:34:42If you actually watch Dragons' Den,
0:34:42 > 0:34:46it couldn't be more Machiavellian if it tried.
0:34:46 > 0:34:49And if you look at each one of the Dragons,
0:34:49 > 0:34:53every single one of them has something Machiavellian about them.
0:34:54 > 0:34:57'I'll offer you ?70,000 for 10% of the company.'
0:34:59 > 0:35:02I simply couldn't believe how Machiavellian they were.
0:35:02 > 0:35:07And it took me a little while, perhaps a month, six weeks,
0:35:07 > 0:35:11to finally understand what the strategy, what the game plan was.
0:35:11 > 0:35:16And once I did, of course, I joined in and became one of them.
0:35:16 > 0:35:20'Only Hilary Devey remains, will she see an opportunity
0:35:20 > 0:35:22'where her rivals have not?'
0:35:23 > 0:35:30HILARY: 'If I was to offer you the ?50,000 for 95% of your company,
0:35:30 > 0:35:32'what would you say?'
0:35:32 > 0:35:34I think it is an important book.
0:35:34 > 0:35:39And I think his principles are the same as mine, in a way,
0:35:39 > 0:35:43where I say the only difference between me and Machiavelli
0:35:43 > 0:35:45is that I make a commercial decision.
0:35:45 > 0:35:49And I will take whatever amount of compassion that's required
0:35:49 > 0:35:50out of that commercial decision.
0:35:50 > 0:35:53But what I will then do is put compassion back in.
0:35:53 > 0:35:57So I'm having to do this because XYZ,
0:35:57 > 0:35:59now how can I help you?
0:36:01 > 0:36:06Chapter 19. How to avoid contempt and hatred.
0:36:06 > 0:36:09Princes must delegate difficult tasks to others
0:36:09 > 0:36:12and keep popular ones for themselves.
0:36:12 > 0:36:16The Prince must never be hated. If you're hated
0:36:16 > 0:36:18then you'll lose your state because there will be
0:36:18 > 0:36:22some good reason why the people hate you and they wont tolerate it.
0:36:22 > 0:36:26Now how can you avoid being hated if terrible things have to be done?
0:36:26 > 0:36:30Well one of Machiavelli's pieces of advice is to say -
0:36:30 > 0:36:34you must appoint a deputy and you must get him to do the dirty work.
0:36:36 > 0:36:41To make his point, Machiavelli tells a story about Cesare Borgia.
0:36:41 > 0:36:44We think of Borgia of a blood-thirsty monster.
0:36:44 > 0:36:46To Machiavelli, he was a hero.
0:36:48 > 0:36:53The story begins in Cesena in the Romagna district of Italy.
0:36:53 > 0:36:57Borgia wants to take over the area so he sends in his minister
0:36:57 > 0:37:01Romero d'Orco - a man with a ruthless reputation.
0:37:03 > 0:37:05Borgia sends him in to Romagna to pacify it.
0:37:05 > 0:37:08He does so by means of unspeakable cruelty
0:37:08 > 0:37:10and there is a threat of a rising.
0:37:13 > 0:37:16Borgia was aware that d'Orco had created hatred among the people
0:37:16 > 0:37:20and, in order to win them over, he decided to make it clear that
0:37:20 > 0:37:21if there had been any cruelty
0:37:21 > 0:37:24it had been triggered by d'Orco and not him.
0:37:24 > 0:37:26And so what happens is,
0:37:26 > 0:37:30Machiavelli says, in wonderfully level piece of prose,
0:37:30 > 0:37:34he says that one morning Romero d'Orco was found
0:37:34 > 0:37:38in the square of Cesena...in two pieces.
0:37:42 > 0:37:44He had d'Orco placed in two pieces
0:37:44 > 0:37:47with a block of wood and blood-stained knife by his side.
0:37:49 > 0:37:54This terrible spectacle left the people both satisfied and stupefied.
0:37:56 > 0:38:00I mean, they thought, wow, he can do anything.
0:38:00 > 0:38:04The hated figure was gone, Borgia was in no way to blame.
0:38:04 > 0:38:08So always put a second in command to do your dirty work.
0:38:12 > 0:38:16Putting that dismembered body on a block, what is that?
0:38:16 > 0:38:18It's not only saying that I executed that man,
0:38:18 > 0:38:22but it's almost like a ritual murder, almost mafia-like.
0:38:22 > 0:38:27And it's there to inspire awe and respect and admiration
0:38:27 > 0:38:29for the man who did it.
0:38:29 > 0:38:31To see a leader who's not only killed him,
0:38:31 > 0:38:34but put him there so everyone could see as a lesson...
0:38:34 > 0:38:37My God, it has a triple effect on public opinion.
0:38:41 > 0:38:46Political leaders have been using this strategy for centuries...
0:38:46 > 0:38:52Without the blood. FDR had his henchmen, Clinton had his henchmen.
0:38:52 > 0:38:58Tony Blair had it, Cameron has Osborne. On and on and on.
0:38:58 > 0:39:00You've got somebody there to do the dirty work,
0:39:00 > 0:39:02and then you can distance yourself from it.
0:39:02 > 0:39:06So the sort of violent example is actually something that goes on
0:39:06 > 0:39:08every day around us.
0:39:10 > 0:39:14Maybe that's why The Prince feels so contemporary.
0:39:14 > 0:39:16The rules of power, it seems,
0:39:16 > 0:39:20are just as applicable today as they were 500 years ago.
0:39:20 > 0:39:24Originally a manual for the Medici, The Prince could just as easily
0:39:24 > 0:39:26be a modern self-help book.
0:39:27 > 0:39:31We tend to think of power only in terms of politics or business,
0:39:31 > 0:39:35but really there's the power to control your destiny, your life,
0:39:35 > 0:39:37how you are in your office.
0:39:37 > 0:39:40If you have no control over your career,
0:39:40 > 0:39:44if you have no influence over your colleagues, peers or your boss,
0:39:44 > 0:39:47it's the most miserable feeling in the world.
0:39:47 > 0:39:50And nobody wants that kind of position in life.
0:39:50 > 0:39:55So everybody is scrambling to get more power, more control,
0:39:55 > 0:39:57over their individual destiny.
0:39:59 > 0:40:06You know, I taught college once at a tiny little Catholic girls' college
0:40:06 > 0:40:09in Dubuque, Iowa. And...
0:40:10 > 0:40:15The power struggles on an academic level at this little thing
0:40:15 > 0:40:18were as vicious as anything in medieval Florence.
0:40:18 > 0:40:22Over who will get to be department chairman and wield that vast power.
0:40:22 > 0:40:25It's all in the context of what you're in.
0:40:26 > 0:40:30It's sort of like...once you enter the boxing ring,
0:40:30 > 0:40:32you have to fight, you can't sit there and just lie down.
0:40:32 > 0:40:34You're going to get beaten up.
0:40:34 > 0:40:36So once you're there, you have to figure out a strategy.
0:40:36 > 0:40:38If you don't want to get hit,
0:40:38 > 0:40:40you have to at least figure out how to avoid getting hit.
0:40:40 > 0:40:42There's no way to opt out.
0:40:44 > 0:40:46But a lot of people are uncomfortable with it
0:40:46 > 0:40:50and they play a kind of negative game of power -
0:40:50 > 0:40:53they say that they find power ugly and disgusting
0:40:53 > 0:40:57and power people are antisocial etc.
0:40:57 > 0:41:00The ones that say they are not interested in power
0:41:00 > 0:41:04are often the most dangerous types.
0:41:04 > 0:41:06I would say that The Prince is more relevant now
0:41:06 > 0:41:08than it almost ever has been.
0:41:08 > 0:41:12And that he was ahead of his time, he was 500 years ahead of his time.
0:41:12 > 0:41:17And that this book is absolutely the perfect template for how to survive
0:41:17 > 0:41:19and thrive in the world that's coming up.
0:41:23 > 0:41:23LOUD EXPLOSION
0:41:26 > 0:41:31Using The Prince as a guide to warfare may sound a bit extreme
0:41:31 > 0:41:35but that's exactly what Colonel Tim Collins did when he was in Iraq.
0:41:35 > 0:41:40Collins is famous for the rousing speech he made on the eve of battle,
0:41:40 > 0:41:45later recreated in a short film starring Kenneth Branagh.
0:41:45 > 0:41:47Now there are some who are alive at this moment
0:41:47 > 0:41:49who will not be alive shortly.
0:41:49 > 0:41:52Those of them who do not wish to go on that journey,
0:41:52 > 0:41:55we will not send them. As for the others...
0:41:55 > 0:41:58What is less known is that, while he was in Iraq,
0:41:58 > 0:42:02Collins kept a copy of The Prince with him at all times.
0:42:02 > 0:42:05In Iraq, I kept dipping into it. I carried it around with me
0:42:05 > 0:42:08in my map pocket and I would take it out and read it.
0:42:08 > 0:42:13I would study to find out what it was he was specifically saying about
0:42:13 > 0:42:15what will cause populations to hate you.
0:42:15 > 0:42:17Because here's the headline news -
0:42:17 > 0:42:19what would have got you hated 500 years ago
0:42:19 > 0:42:21is what's gonna get you hated today.
0:42:21 > 0:42:25So it's worth studying it to what it is he's saying.
0:42:25 > 0:42:27This is the book I had with me in Iraq.
0:42:27 > 0:42:32And it's pretty fragile now because it's literally been thought the wars.
0:42:32 > 0:42:33Sand still falls out of it.
0:42:33 > 0:42:37If you read Machiavelli, you realise at the end of the day
0:42:37 > 0:42:39what you've got to do is the right thing.
0:42:39 > 0:42:41So, if you are in an occupied village,
0:42:41 > 0:42:44we could organise a football match and give out bars of soap.
0:42:44 > 0:42:45Or we could have a curfew and tell you,
0:42:45 > 0:42:49the first person I catch with a weapon is a dead man,
0:42:49 > 0:42:51and I want all weapons handed in tomorrow.
0:42:51 > 0:42:53And after that, anybody caught with one is a dead man.
0:42:53 > 0:42:55And then get all the weapons handed in.
0:42:55 > 0:42:57And once all the weapons are out of the way
0:42:57 > 0:43:01and they fear your very shadow, then we can have a football match.
0:43:01 > 0:43:05And do you think, as a manual, that this had lessons for you?
0:43:05 > 0:43:07Absolutely. I mean, he's spot on throughout.
0:43:07 > 0:43:10I think that all he's saying ultimately is,
0:43:10 > 0:43:12for good or for ill, this is what works.
0:43:12 > 0:43:15So, on that basis, I think he's the good guy.
0:43:16 > 0:43:20What he described was what he saw. And he did it so accurately
0:43:20 > 0:43:24that here we are centuries later still reading it
0:43:24 > 0:43:26and still observing it in our everyday lives.
0:43:28 > 0:43:30Chapter Three.
0:43:30 > 0:43:35It should be observed here that men should either be caressed or crushed
0:43:35 > 0:43:38because they can avenge slight injuries
0:43:38 > 0:43:40but not those that are very severe.
0:43:41 > 0:43:43COL COLLINS: What Machiavelli would say is that,
0:43:43 > 0:43:47if you decide to do something, you go through with it to the end.
0:43:47 > 0:43:51And that means not to spatter your enemy, to crush your enemy.
0:43:51 > 0:43:54Cause him to cease to exist. That way you're certain there can be no
0:43:54 > 0:43:56comeback on you or your people.
0:43:58 > 0:44:02The crush-your-enemy dynamic is something that Machiavelli
0:44:02 > 0:44:04discovered as a law of power. And it's timeless.
0:44:04 > 0:44:08And it exists in warfare and it totally exists in business.
0:44:08 > 0:44:13The classic example was the war between Microsoft and Netscape
0:44:13 > 0:44:16in the 1990s, in which Netscape was one of the hottest things around
0:44:16 > 0:44:21and Microsoft completely crushed Netscape. It doesn't exist any more.
0:44:21 > 0:44:28Internet wars - Microsoft vs Netscape - Goliath takes on David.
0:44:29 > 0:44:30You find the same thing with Google.
0:44:30 > 0:44:33Every time there is a possible competitor,
0:44:33 > 0:44:36they go out and buy them out. Like YouTube, etc.
0:44:36 > 0:44:38Google buys YouTube.
0:44:38 > 0:44:41You look at it with Amazon. On and on down the line,
0:44:41 > 0:44:44it's the dynamic in business where you need to consume
0:44:44 > 0:44:46the various rivals in your path.
0:44:47 > 0:44:52It can be said of men that they are ungrateful, fickle liars and deceivers.
0:44:52 > 0:44:54They shun danger and are greedy for profit.
0:44:56 > 0:44:59I keep coming back to these lines from The Prince.
0:44:59 > 0:45:02Is this what people are really like?
0:45:02 > 0:45:05Are we all ungrateful, fickle liars and deceivers?
0:45:07 > 0:45:10The Machiavelli Test is an attempt to answer that.
0:45:10 > 0:45:13It was developed by psychologists in the 1960s.
0:45:13 > 0:45:1720 questions tap into our Machiavellian instincts.
0:45:17 > 0:45:20You end up with a score that tells you whether
0:45:20 > 0:45:23you're a high Mac or a low Mac.
0:45:23 > 0:45:25Now this is something I can't resist.
0:45:26 > 0:45:30Alan, in this test there are 20 statements.
0:45:30 > 0:45:33I want you to indicate the extent to which you agree or disagree
0:45:33 > 0:45:36with each statement. I want you to answer as truthfully as you can.
0:45:36 > 0:45:40Answer one if you strongly disagree with the statement,
0:45:40 > 0:45:41two if you disagree,
0:45:41 > 0:45:43three if you are neutral,
0:45:43 > 0:45:45four if you agree,
0:45:45 > 0:45:48and five if you strongly agree. OK?
0:45:48 > 0:45:53Number one. Never tell anyone the real reason you did something
0:45:53 > 0:45:54unless it is useful to do so.
0:45:56 > 0:45:57Two.
0:45:57 > 0:46:02The best way to handle people is to tell them what they want to hear.
0:46:04 > 0:46:07Three.
0:46:07 > 0:46:09It is hard to get ahead without cutting corners.
0:46:11 > 0:46:13Four.
0:46:13 > 0:46:15It is wise to flatter important people.
0:46:17 > 0:46:18Four.
0:46:19 > 0:46:23Since its conception, there've been around 1,400 studies
0:46:23 > 0:46:26that have used the Machiavelli Test.
0:46:26 > 0:46:28So what do the results tell us?
0:46:28 > 0:46:31One of the most consistent findings to come out of our studies
0:46:31 > 0:46:33is that men are more Machiavellian than women.
0:46:33 > 0:46:35Not by a great deal,
0:46:35 > 0:46:38but they come out consistently more Machiavellian than women.
0:46:38 > 0:46:40Machiavellianism tends to peak in adolescence.
0:46:40 > 0:46:43And another interesting finding to come from the studies
0:46:43 > 0:46:46is that it doesn't matter what your political orientation is.
0:46:46 > 0:46:47That is, right wingers
0:46:47 > 0:46:50and left wingers don't differ in Machiavellianism.
0:46:50 > 0:46:53You might tend to think that perhaps right wingers are perhaps
0:46:53 > 0:46:55a little bit more Machiavellian. They're not.
0:46:56 > 0:46:57So how did I do?
0:46:57 > 0:47:00Well, Alan, I suppose it's good news.
0:47:00 > 0:47:04You came out with a mean score of 2.95 on these questions.
0:47:04 > 0:47:06Which means that you're neutral.
0:47:06 > 0:47:09Or just tending to disagree with the Machiavellian questions.
0:47:09 > 0:47:12That makes you somewhat less Machiavellian
0:47:12 > 0:47:14than the average person.
0:47:14 > 0:47:20But if I were truly Machiavellian, I would probably be lying, wouldn't I?
0:47:20 > 0:47:23You probably would in this setting because you're filming
0:47:23 > 0:47:26a documentary and your responses are going out to the nation.
0:47:26 > 0:47:28But if you were an anonymous research...
0:47:28 > 0:47:32I'm still not sure what to make of Machiavelli.
0:47:32 > 0:47:36Is The Prince a manual for tyrants, devoid of all morality,
0:47:36 > 0:47:39or is it a realistic guide to life?
0:47:39 > 0:47:41Is Machiavelli a goodie or a baddie?
0:47:43 > 0:47:45It seems to me that he holds a place as a cultural icon.
0:47:45 > 0:47:47He's a baddie.
0:47:47 > 0:47:50Whereas actually the book is about the exposure of the nature
0:47:50 > 0:47:52of badness and goodness.
0:47:52 > 0:47:56It says, we need to think of morality as a toolkit.
0:47:56 > 0:47:59Vices and virtues are artefacts we've invented to survive.
0:48:01 > 0:48:05Is it a realistic view of human nature, and not just of human nature
0:48:05 > 0:48:08but the journey that we all have to make?
0:48:08 > 0:48:12Well, yes, it could be. But it could be a realistic view of human nature
0:48:12 > 0:48:15after you've lost belief in love and kindness.
0:48:16 > 0:48:19But you could put it the other way round and think
0:48:19 > 0:48:20that what's being said is -
0:48:20 > 0:48:24if virtue isn't necessarily rewarded, why be virtuous?
0:48:24 > 0:48:25Which is a good question.
0:48:25 > 0:48:27And the answer would be something like -
0:48:27 > 0:48:30well, virtue is good in and of itself.
0:48:30 > 0:48:31It's better to be kind than to be cruel.
0:48:31 > 0:48:33Not because you'll do better in life,
0:48:33 > 0:48:36but because it's better to be kind than to be cruel.
0:48:36 > 0:48:39I'm keen on the thought that Machiavelli is a moralist,
0:48:39 > 0:48:41he's just not a kind of moralist whom I admire.
0:48:41 > 0:48:43He is someone who thinks that the quality of your actions
0:48:43 > 0:48:46is to be judged in terms of their consequences.
0:48:46 > 0:48:50That allows him this great leeway for saying, well,
0:48:50 > 0:48:54it's necessary for the goal, which is a good one, for you to do evil.
0:48:54 > 0:48:57And don't worry about the fact that you have done something
0:48:57 > 0:49:01which is unjust if you are certain that if you didn't do it
0:49:01 > 0:49:04it would have affected the security and the wellbeing of the state.
0:49:04 > 0:49:07Because your job is to maintain that.
0:49:07 > 0:49:10And the point is, you've got to maintain that whatever happens.
0:49:10 > 0:49:13That's the horrible thing about Machiavelli.
0:49:13 > 0:49:16I mean, let's be clear - this is, I think, a horrible book.
0:49:16 > 0:49:18I mean it's a horrible book because it says, you know,
0:49:18 > 0:49:21don't worry about the virtues, just worry about the consequences.
0:49:21 > 0:49:24Your job is to keep people secure. Do whatever is necessary.
0:49:24 > 0:49:27Well, if you think about the implications of that,
0:49:27 > 0:49:28they're pretty appalling.
0:49:28 > 0:49:30I also think there's a despair in this.
0:49:30 > 0:49:33Because the fundamental despair in it is the assumption that
0:49:33 > 0:49:35people don't want to collaborate with each other.
0:49:35 > 0:49:38That people don't want to look after each other.
0:49:38 > 0:49:42You can imagine it also as a book written in the aftermath of a trauma.
0:49:42 > 0:49:46And in a way, of course, he was in prison. So there was a trauma.
0:49:46 > 0:49:51You could think Machiavelli is very disillusioned about a lot of things.
0:49:51 > 0:49:54So it's a bit like he's saying, once you lose heart,
0:49:54 > 0:49:57once you lose belief in human goodness and collaboration
0:49:57 > 0:50:01and kindness and love, this is what the world is going to look like.
0:50:01 > 0:50:03And more and more of us are going to have experiences
0:50:03 > 0:50:06in which we feel disillusioned, so we need to wise up to this.
0:50:06 > 0:50:06MUSIC: "Made Niggaz" by Tupac Shakur
0:50:08 > 0:50:10This is Tupac Shakur.
0:50:10 > 0:50:16He'd been huge fan of Machiavelli before he was gunned down 1996.
0:50:16 > 0:50:20When was in prison, he studied The Prince and when he got out
0:50:20 > 0:50:25he changed his name to Makaveli. And made videos like this.
0:50:25 > 0:50:25# Makaveli the Don till I'm gone... #
0:50:27 > 0:50:31More recently, the rapper 50 Cent wrote a book with Robert Greene
0:50:31 > 0:50:36called The 50th Law - a Machiavellian bible for success
0:50:36 > 0:50:39based on the single principal - fear nothing.
0:50:40 > 0:50:45There is not a single more Machiavellian environment
0:50:45 > 0:50:47than the music industry on this planet.
0:50:47 > 0:50:50It makes Hollywood look like kindergarten.
0:50:50 > 0:50:54It is ruthless. It's Game of Thrones times five.
0:50:54 > 0:50:57And so someone like 50, he said it helped him.
0:50:57 > 0:51:01It helped him negotiate this shark-infested environment.
0:51:02 > 0:51:04Power is a neutral term.
0:51:04 > 0:51:08It can be used for bad and it can be used for good.
0:51:08 > 0:51:09It's like a tool.
0:51:09 > 0:51:09MUSIC: "Ambition" by 50 Cent
0:51:20 > 0:51:23Apart from Tupac and 50 Cent,
0:51:23 > 0:51:26who else these days measures up to Machiavelli?
0:51:26 > 0:51:28Who would Machiavelli approve of?
0:51:29 > 0:51:33Well, a lot of what Machiavelli was about was being strategic,
0:51:33 > 0:51:35about trying to think in a longer term frame.
0:51:35 > 0:51:38If so if you think of someone like Alex Ferguson at Manchester United,
0:51:38 > 0:51:40he was clearly as strategic manager.
0:51:40 > 0:51:42He wasn't thinking about the next match,
0:51:42 > 0:51:44he was thinking on a much longer time frame.
0:51:44 > 0:51:47I think someone like that would be an unconscious Machiavellian.
0:51:47 > 0:51:52I would say that the most...person certainly in my lifetime
0:51:52 > 0:51:58that I would resemble to Machiavelli would be Margaret Thatcher.
0:51:58 > 0:52:01She certainly wasn't loved by her Cabinet.
0:52:01 > 0:52:03But she was certainly feared.
0:52:03 > 0:52:07I think if you're looking for a very good example of an institution
0:52:07 > 0:52:13that has applied well some of the lessons and principles in The Prince,
0:52:13 > 0:52:16you'll find them in the Royal Family.
0:52:16 > 0:52:20I mean, there was a period when the sense of the royal brand,
0:52:20 > 0:52:22if you like, was becoming quite negative.
0:52:22 > 0:52:24Well, they've seen that off. Big time.
0:52:24 > 0:52:29I think they've seen it off, in part, by operating some of these
0:52:29 > 0:52:32timeless principles that are set out in The Prince.
0:52:32 > 0:52:34But in very a modern context.
0:52:36 > 0:52:41The Prince may anticipate a world five centuries into the future
0:52:41 > 0:52:44but what happened to the book itself?
0:52:44 > 0:52:50It was published in 1532 and not surprisingly the Pope banned it.
0:52:50 > 0:52:53The Papal Index is set up in 1559.
0:52:53 > 0:52:56It's simply an alphabetical list of books which you mustn't read.
0:52:56 > 0:52:59They are mostly Lutheran and Calvinist books,
0:52:59 > 0:53:02works of deep heresy according to the Catholic Church.
0:53:02 > 0:53:04But some secular writers are in there,
0:53:04 > 0:53:08and Niccolo Machiavelli is in there under the heading
0:53:08 > 0:53:11"all his works are totally banned."
0:53:14 > 0:53:17But that didn't stop The Prince from reaching England
0:53:17 > 0:53:22and cementing Niccolo Machiavelli's reputation as Old Nick - the devil.
0:53:23 > 0:53:27England was the country that really played the biggest role
0:53:27 > 0:53:30in spreading this idea that this man was satanic.
0:53:32 > 0:53:35Shakespeare doesn't exactly help,
0:53:35 > 0:53:39as Machiavelli's name is evoked by the scheming Duke of Gloucester -
0:53:39 > 0:53:41the future Richard III.
0:53:41 > 0:53:44I can add colours to the Chameleon
0:53:44 > 0:53:46Change shapes with Proteus for advantages
0:53:46 > 0:53:49And set the murderous Machiavel to school.
0:53:50 > 0:53:54We may have inherited this idea of Machiavelli as the devil
0:53:54 > 0:53:56but that's not what the Italians think.
0:53:56 > 0:54:00In Florence, his statue stands outside the Uffizi
0:54:00 > 0:54:04alongside the Italian greats.
0:54:04 > 0:54:06The Prince is even a set text in schools.
0:54:15 > 0:54:19If you think for instance that it's one of the three Italian books
0:54:19 > 0:54:24translated all over the world, in almost all languages in the world.
0:54:24 > 0:54:28The other ones are Dante's, of course, The Divine Comedy of Dante.
0:54:28 > 0:54:30And Pinocchio by Collodi.
0:54:30 > 0:54:37The Prince, Pinocchio and Dante - the three most translated books.
0:54:37 > 0:54:39This is something, don't you know.
0:54:41 > 0:54:44And there's another reason why Machiavelli is admired.
0:54:44 > 0:54:47Ultimately, he was in favour of republics
0:54:47 > 0:54:49rather than inherited rule.
0:54:49 > 0:54:52He distinguishes between an old prince and a new prince.
0:54:52 > 0:54:55Old princes are people who have inherited their position.
0:54:55 > 0:54:58But then there's the new prince who rises from the bottom -
0:54:58 > 0:55:01he's completely on the side of the new prince
0:55:01 > 0:55:04because he believes that the new prince can only rise to the top
0:55:04 > 0:55:06with their own energy.
0:55:06 > 0:55:09Now one of the interesting things about The Prince is
0:55:09 > 0:55:11it's got an irony attached to it.
0:55:11 > 0:55:15It's saying, if you want to hold to power, this is how to behave.
0:55:15 > 0:55:17But we can all read it.
0:55:17 > 0:55:20So it's a book about trickery which exposes the tricks.
0:55:22 > 0:55:25Here are some different translations of The Prince.
0:55:25 > 0:55:29We received them from the many visitors coming here.
0:55:29 > 0:55:34We have French, from the Czech Republic, in Norwegian,
0:55:34 > 0:55:38from Oslo, in German, Korean...
0:55:38 > 0:55:40Russian.
0:55:40 > 0:55:43A doctor from Israel sent us this.
0:55:43 > 0:55:45Chinese.
0:55:45 > 0:55:47This we received from Belgrade.
0:55:47 > 0:55:52Polish, Japanese, Finnish, Turkish...
0:55:52 > 0:55:56Argentina, Norwegian and English of course.
0:56:01 > 0:56:06And this is his land - his vineyards, his olive trees,
0:56:06 > 0:56:07his property.
0:56:09 > 0:56:13Today Machiavelli's house is owned by a wine company.
0:56:13 > 0:56:19Across the road, you can order a Chianti from Machiavelli's vineyard.
0:56:19 > 0:56:22Here's to The Prince. OK.
0:56:23 > 0:56:25Now tell me,
0:56:25 > 0:56:28do many people come here to visit the home of Machiavelli?
0:56:28 > 0:56:31Yes, from all over the world.
0:56:31 > 0:56:34Many years ago, came Tony Blair.
0:56:34 > 0:56:38Really? Really. When did he come here?
0:56:38 > 0:56:44He came in 1998. So just a year after he came to power. Yeah.
0:56:46 > 0:56:48Did you take him round the house?
0:56:48 > 0:56:53Si, we went around, and we gave him a copy of The Prince.
0:56:53 > 0:56:55Did you really? Yeah.
0:56:55 > 0:56:56In Italian or English?
0:56:56 > 0:56:58In Italian.
0:56:58 > 0:57:02But what happened to Machiavelli himself?
0:57:02 > 0:57:05The whole of the point of writing The Prince was to get
0:57:05 > 0:57:08noticed by the most powerful man in Florence.
0:57:08 > 0:57:11But Machiavelli totally failed.
0:57:11 > 0:57:15As far as we know, Lorenzo the Magnificent never even read it
0:57:15 > 0:57:19and Machiavelli never got his job back.
0:57:19 > 0:57:21He ended up here on his estate -
0:57:21 > 0:57:25drinking wine and writing books and plays.
0:57:26 > 0:57:28In many ways, Machiavelli was failure.
0:57:28 > 0:57:31Because he gave advice that other people could never be seen
0:57:31 > 0:57:33to be taking.
0:57:33 > 0:57:35It may well have been very useful to other people,
0:57:35 > 0:57:38but the last thing they could do, according to his own
0:57:38 > 0:57:41tenets in the book, is show that they were taking his advice.
0:57:42 > 0:57:47The biggest irony in this whole story is that Machiavelli himself
0:57:47 > 0:57:50didn't appear to be in the least bit Machiavellian.
0:57:52 > 0:57:56In a letter to a friend, Machiavelli once wrote:
0:57:56 > 0:57:58"When evening comes I go back home.
0:57:58 > 0:58:03"I take off my work clothes and put on the clothes of an ambassador.
0:58:03 > 0:58:09"I enter the ancient courts of rulers. I forget every worry.
0:58:09 > 0:58:12"I'm no longer afraid of poverty or frightened of death.
0:58:14 > 0:58:16"I live entirely through them."
0:58:18 > 0:58:23Machiavelli died in 1527 at the age of 58,
0:58:23 > 0:58:27five years before The Prince was published.
0:58:27 > 0:58:30Little did he know that 500 years later
0:58:30 > 0:58:34what he called his "little pamphlet" would remain
0:58:34 > 0:58:37one of the most influential books ever written.
0:58:41 > 0:58:43# Makaveli the Don, till I'm gone
0:58:43 > 0:58:45# I maintain my army
0:58:45 > 0:58:47# Of lunatics that stay armed
0:58:47 > 0:58:48# Till the day I die... #
0:58:48 > 0:58:51Alan! Alan.
0:58:51 > 0:58:55What about the BBC? Surely that's a Machiavellian institution?
0:58:57 > 0:59:01You may think that but I couldn't possibly comment.
0:59:01 > 0:59:04# My life in exchange for yours... #
0:59:04 > 0:59:07Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd